It was a calm Saturday in Richmond when my wife, Danielle, and I were at the supermarket. Four college kids started mocking her for no reason, making crude comments and humiliating her in front of other shoppers. When they followed us to the parking lot and deliberately threw a drink on her, something inside me switched.
I moved calmly, using decades of training to subdue the aggressor without unnecessary violence. The others froze or fled, and the security guard confirmed the situation. Danielle was shaken but unharmed.
Two days later, the quietest of the boys returned, apologizing sincerely and giving us a school paper he’d written about ignorance, courage, and real strength. Danielle smiled, recognizing that sometimes calm and resolve teach more than anger or force ever could.
It wasn’t about hurting anyone—it was about standing up for the person you love and showing the difference between real power and cruelty.